Honor
by trunswicked
Summary: Short story: AU where Meilin is a Conqueror.
1. 1 - Honor

{A/N: this is set in an alternate universe where Meilin joins the Conquerors instead of Abeke. she is loyal to Shane and is used as his best warrior; a killing machine.}

"Kill him,"

The order was clear. demanding. Once the words were spoken, fear hung thick in the air from the people around her.

But Meilin of Zhong didn't have any trace of fear or remorse in her heart. So she carried out the orders that were given to her, and stabbed her sword right into the enemy's heart.

A gasp, and then silence. Hot blood ran down Meilin's hands and the sword as she withdrew her weapon quickly. The boy fell at her feet, dead, like a doll. His blonde hair was disheveled, his mouth open, and his right hand spayed out like he had tried to call for help. But it was too late. A faded tattoo of a wolf on his arm was so covered in bruises and blood that it was almost invisible.

Meilin turned away from the dead boy and then to her king, bowing on one knee with the bloody sword gripped tightly in her hand. Her king- Shane- smiled at her, his reptilian blue eyes narrowed in cold pleasure.

"The Three Fallen are dead!" He announced. The room was so silent that his voice echoed for a few moments. Dead, dead, dead.

Meilin's snake eyes rested on a familar object in Shane's lap. Shane grabbed his possession, stood up, and held it up for the entire room to see. "The Conquerors have won!" Then the room erupted into loud cheering, and then a chant of 'All Hail the Reptile King! All Hail the Reptile King!'

The king grinned maniacally at the cheering. He turned his possession around, and Meilin was staring into the lifeless eyes of Briggan the Wolf's severed head.

The summoners of Briggan, Essix, and Uraza were gone. And they had won.


	2. 2 - Loyalty

Meilin stood amongst a sea of Conquerors. But she didn't plan on attacking them, because she was one of them. She silently ran a hand along her beautifully crafted black armor without looking down. Every Conqueror had their sinister eyes on one person: The Reptile King. Her king. Shane. He was giving a speech, no doubt, but Meilin barely heard him. Something stirred inside of her, something uncomfortable. She had the vague feeling that she was being watched. In the back of her mind, Jhi- her spirit animal- stirred too.

Meilin turned around then, ordering a few Conquerors to move out of her way. When one backed away, five followed. They were terrified of her, and the fact made her smile.

Behind her, Shane glanced, narrowed his blue reptilian eyes, and grinned.

It turned out that Meilin's instincts were correct. She'd sniffed out a band of unused tools.

Devin Trunswick, Karmo, and Ana all faced her, weapons drawn and spirit animals active. Devin's black wildcat lashed its tail and snarled viciously. Karmo's hamerkop spread its wings out wide and Meilin felt her arm hair stand up, as if lightning had struck close by. Ana's gila monster hissed and showed its teeth that were perfectly capable of killing a full-grown man.

Meilin was amused, but suspicious as well. They were no match for her and Jhi, and they knew it. Then why would they ambush her? As far as she knew, all three of them were loyal to the Conquerors.

It didn't really matter what their affiliation was, though, because Meilin trust nobody but her King, and she was going to pommel them anyways.

"Now... what is this?" She said. "Have I discovered three traitors?"

"We're here to talk." Karmo replied cautiously. In the darkness, Meilin could barely see him. He stepped forward, motioning for Devin and Ana to stay where they were.

Meilin reached for her dagger without taking her eyes off of Karmo. It wasn't her quarterstaff or a sword, but it would have to do. "Talking was never one of my strong suits," she said before lunging forward.

It all happened at once; Karmo's eyes widened. His hamerkop screamed and took to the air. Devin and Ana started to run forward, Devin yelling out in fear for his friend. A blinding white light appeared beside Meilin, and Jhi the Giant Panda was beside her. Two guards appeared in the alleyway behind Meilin, drawn in by the noise, but she wasn't deterred. They were going to fight on her side.

Then the world snapped out of slow-time. Jhi collided with Devin's black wildcat. The big cat was thrown off by the panda's sudden appearance and was slammed to the ground. The crash sounded much less painful than Meilin guessed it felt. The two guards immediately stationed themselves in front of Meilin and one brought his staff up as Ana's gila monster leaped at his face. Its teeth clamped down on the staff, saliva laced with venom splattering onto the ground uselessly. Meilin brought her dagger up to stab Karmo in the shoulder and it connected. Karmo tried to swipe her feet from under her, but the stab made him stagger away and scream in pain. Meilin ripped the dagger from his shoulder viciously and kicked him to the ground, turning to Devin next.

The Euran boy was about to bring his sword right down on her head, but Meilin was already calling for Jhi. She dodged his sword easily, the world slow, and stabbed the already-bloody dagger into his stomach. Then she ripped it out just as viciously as she had done to Karmo. Devin gasped and crumpled to the ground, sword clanging onto stone as it fell. His black wildcat had become free of Jhi's grip and leaped at Meilin in revenge. Meilin felt claws slice her shoulder and she stifled a scream, trying to kick the big cat off. Both Jhi and one of the guards managed to rip it off of her, and the cat didn't get back up again. Ana and her gila monster were already on the ground, both beaten and unable to fight anymore.

Meilin's shoulder was on fire, but her anger was an inferno. "Useless brats!" she spit out. "I should rip out your hearts right here, and add them to Shane's collection."

Devin looked at her with hot hatred. "You and Shane have destroyed Erdas," He breathed heavily from his ugly stomach wound. He wouldn't live long.

Karmo shook as he tried to get up as well, his wounded arm hanging limp, and his spirit dead. "You killed Abeke and Uraza,"

"And Conor and Briggan," Devin choked out.

Ana brought her injured gila monster close to her chest, hands shaking. "And Rollan and Essix."

Karmo stared at her with dull eyes. "And you... Meilin and Jhi... someday you'll join them,"

"Leave them to die," Meilin turned away and addressed the guards. "They deserve ther misery. It's such a shame... Shane really liked them." The guards nodded, eyes wide and foreheads slick with sweat. Meilin snapped her fingers and Jhi, hardly injured, returned to her hand as a tattoo in a flash of light.

As they walked away, Meilin stepped on the hamerkop's wing as it lay dead on the stone. She grit her teeth and kicked its body away, bringing a hand up to her exposed and bleeding shoulder. Some of her armor was gone, but she didn't stop to look for it.

Meilin of Zhong had no trace of remorse or regret in her heart. She was loyal to the Conquerors until she felt death's grip. And she had used this loyalty to become a monster.


End file.
